of time by us in the second proposition distinguish'd viz. the comming of the woe or the sounding of the seventh Trumpet but we must not so leave where we 〈◊〉 Rev. 14. for at ver 14. to the end of the chap. there is another vision which may raise doubts but this vision being under the seventh Trumpet we shall passe it onely to take in the 4. first verses of cap. 15. parallel with the 4. first verses of Rev. 14. here Iohn had a sight of the seven Angels with the last plagues who or what these Angels are I cannot tell but if v. 2. be any way exegeticall of it I am of opinion that these Angels come out of that Church where Antichrist had set up his usurped government and by the great commotion Rev. 11. was thrown downe for I take Sea of glasse to signifie a refined Church and these that stand upon it the Witnesses which in the downfall of Antichrists power Rev. 11. ascended to the Throne to Heaven this I take to be the mount Sion Rev. 14. 1. on which those that openly and purely confessed Christ stood there they stand on mount Zihon there they stand on a sea of glass mingled with fire i. e. a pure and a zealous Church These are said to get the victory over the Beast and over his Image and over his mark and over the number of his name this clearly points out to us that Church which of all the nations in the Christian world shall be first purged and refined and freed from Antichristian bondage and that is that Church where the beast of the earth set up his new government These 3. verses in Rev. 15 set forth the happy progresse in a reformation which the witnesses wholly risen from under the Antichrists cruell Tyranny have made they became more pure and more zealous after their great deliverance which they thankfully publish to the world in hope that God will do great things against his enemies for the further propagating of the Gospel These are the visions which we finde to fall betwixt the passing of the second wo to the comming of the third I shall onely adde this and then passe to the third and add by way of Quaere Whether that space of time Dan. 12. 11 12. be not the space of time betwixt the passing of the second woe and the full accomplishment of the third I say full accomplishment becuse the vialls I conceive doe set forth Gods graduall proceeding against the enemies of the Church under the third wo trumpet all things under the third wo are not accomplished in a day either for the good of the Church or the ruine of the enemies Now at the end of that 1290. dayes the time of the Jews persecution and dissipation shall be at an end and they shall begin to flock in to Christ but the day of their establishment in their own land that blessed day is not to be untill the 1335. day but this we leave I proceed now to the last Epocha of time which lies within our circle and that is of the time of the third woe and the effects thereof which leads us to the second thing in the little note of my noble friend to be discussed viz of the great battell distinct from that in Rev. 11. We shall finde if I mistake not the seventh trumpet mentioned but twice in the Revelation Rev. 10. 7. and Rev. 11. 15. in chap. 10. 7. when the seventh Angel shall begin to sound the mystery of God shall be finished that is the time of the Gentiles tyranny over the Jewes and Gospel Gentiles shall be accomplished and the twelve Tribes shall be converted Rom. 11. 25. compared with Isa. 23. 13. and Luke 21. 24. as we have already shewed in the foregoing treatise The other Scripture Rev. 11. 15. mentioning the seventh Trumpet shewes the effects or consequents of it which is the opening of Gods mystery to be finished at this time and you have two sides of this cloud the darke and the bright side the bright side is the bringing in of the twelve Tribes to the Gospel and the drawing of the Gentiles after them Zach. 8. 3. Rom. 11. 12. to the same faith and worship where it is said that the Kingdomes of this world are become the Lords and his Christs and he shall reigne for evermore and then here is the dark side of this mystery which is wrath ver 18. and eternall ruine on the enemies of the Church we find this mystery thus finished Dan. 7. 26 â—…7 and Dan. 12. 1 â—… 3. there the fulfilling of the word of God or the finishing of the mystery of God is resembled to the day of judgment and so it is Revel 19. 20 and 20. 1 2 3 4 5. 'tis doomes day the day of damnation to the wicked to the Dragon the Beast and the false Prophet and it is the resurrection day to the believing Jewes and sincere gospel-Gentiles ver 5. this is the first resurrection what is the first resurrection see ver 4. the establishing of the witnesses in the Throne and giving them power to reigne over the world and to purge the earth At the passing at the second woe the witnesses rise but at the comming of the third woe the witnesses are fully established in their power they will have then a large power and a lasting power You knew where he was born that by his Christian piety and courage turned the heathenish world from Idols to serve the living God he made Rome Heathen to become Rome Christian he threw downe the heathenish potentates from the same place look for a Monarch by his Christian courage and magnanimous endeavours to throw downe Rome Antichristian and carry on a glorious Church and State-reformation in Europe sanctified affections fit a noble Christian for great understandings Then are afflictions sanctified when they drive to repent for our forefathers sins our own and the nations sins and make us looke onely to Christ for mercy David by Gods providence was brought so low as to beg his bread of a rigid surly clowne Naball before he cast his shooe over Edom and made Philistia glad on any tearms to accept him Crosse providences shall make me admire the unsearchable wisdome of God but never make me dispondingly to call in question the faithfulnesse of God that which most men this day make the ground of their diffidence I make the argument of my confidence and I build my arguments on that which I am sure is more stable then Heaven and Earth viz. the prophetique promises of that God who is both a Sun and Sheild to all that believe in them a Sun to give light heat and comfort to them a Sheild to safe-guard and protect them The seventh Trumpet produceth these two generall effects the ruining of the enemies of the Church throughout the world and the redeeming of the Jewes from all parts of the world and the sending out of the Gospel to the reforming of the
Antichrists ruine as 't is expounded Revel 14. 15. the place is called the valley of decision and why of decision not that this alludes to the harvest but to the place where this harvest shall be which is Mount Olivet alluding to that great rent that the Antichrist shall make there Zach. 14. 4. the great division shall be made betwixt Antichrist and the true Church by Mount Olivet cannot be meant otherwise then some eminent National Church of Unity within it selfe out of which Church Antichrist and his apostate company arise against it and this makes Mount Olivet to cleave in sunder so that now that place is become the valley of decision and then the next verse after the Text v. 15. tells us this day of the Lord is to be when the Iews redemption draweth nigh Luke 21. and as Matth. 24. hath it when the signe of the Son of man appears in heaven for the Sun shall be darkened the Moon shall withdraw her light as 't is in all the Evangelists except Iohn and the immediate effect of it is as in the following verses a glorious day of Church-reformation likewise in Obadiah 15 16. this day of Antichrists destruction is called the day of the Lord upon the Gentiles what Gentiles 1 The Gentiles that have drank the blood of the Church they were those Gentiles that had dranke blood upon the holy Mountain therefore as these Heathens had done to the Church so the Lord would now do to them Revel 18. 16. is a parallel Comment on this Text. 2 They are those Gentiles that shall be destinated to destruction when the Gospel-Church shall have a glorious deliverance and the Iews both the ten Tribes and two Tribes for these are the sonnes of Iacob shall possesse their possessions verse 17. by which it seems most probable that this day of the Lord must be that day when God destroys Antichrist who gathers great strength Revel 19. 19. against the Lord Jesus that is against his true Church and this war is called a war with the Lambe i e. with the true Church for it is impossible they should make war with the Lord Jesus any otherwise then by ruining his Offices and his Ordinances and blaspheming his Name and denying his Godhead and which so neerly concerns his honour that he will by his immediate power and might arise and ruine the Antichrist and his Polyarchie To these we might add many more texts Zach. 14. 1 3 5. parallel with Iude 14. and Revel 14. 1. CHAP. XII ANd shall destroy with the brightnesse of his comming 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 this is that other expression of the manner of Antichrists ruine It is a word say the Learned rarely found amongst other Authors but familiarly in Pauls writings it is a word setting out the utter ruine of the Antichrist as Antichrist by his appearing made the power of the two Witnesses and all their pious endeavours of none effect he brought it to nothing by laying their honour and majesty in the dust so Christ by his appearing shall bring down and destroy the government and strength and power of Antichrist he shall render all that he hath done as vain Christ shall overturn his Babel-strength and ambition Christ shall make all his successes to come at last to nothing and all his wealth and conceited honour to vanish away He thinks by his prosperous successes to be some body and to raise himselfe a sure pillar but Christ shall make all this uselesse to him and of none effect he 'l not leave one stone of his Government standing upon another Hence Daniel 7. 26. a Text parallel with this both in phrase and sense 't is there said The Iudgment shall fit and they shall take away his dominion to consume and destroy him unto the end The like expression to the same end we have Revel 14. 19. of casting the vine of the earth into the great wine-presse of the wrath of God that is crushing him to nothing grinding him as small as the dust making him lighter then vanity uselesse and vanishing as the smoke Concurring in sense with these is that Text Revel 19. 20. where the Antichrist is taken cast alive into the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone which notes first the dreadfulnesse of the destruction He is cast alive and secondly theirr ecoverableness of his ruine He perisheth for ever for out of hell there is no redemption and thirdly it notes the Author of this ruine The Lord Jesus for none can cast into hell but he none hath the power of heaven and hell but he he hath the key of David and none but he Once again let 's view the word and it denotes the quality of the person as well as the manner of his ruine I think we may stretch the sense so far without cracking any golden string of divine Truth Observe then there are two enemies that Paul saith Christ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 shall destroy This in the Text Iohn in Revel 20. 5. compared with Revel 19. 20. tells us shall be at the first resurrection the other enemy Paul tells us 1 Cor. 15. 26. at the last and general resurrection 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 shall be destroyed there 's the same word expressed of death which is called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the last enemy of the general resurrection to note that the greatest and worst of enemies to be destroyed at the first resurrection of Jews and Gentiles to Christ is this 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and the last and worst of enemies at the second is death With the brightnesse of his comming 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to a word in the appearing of his presence 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies an appearance with glory and splendor Against my South-winde here ariseth the Euroclydon I am fallen into a place where three Seas meet Some say by this comming of Christ is meant the comming of Christ to Judgement some say no but it is meant Christs comming to reigne personally upon earth amongst his Saints Say a third neither but Christs comming is to destroy Antichrist by his glorious power in raising up the Witnesses This last opinion is the truest and like truth hath the fewest followers That opinion that this is meant of the coming of Christ to Judgment is most imbraced and followed and their reason for it is the same that the Chiliasts use to maintein their absurd and little lesse then blasphemous opinion of Christs personal reign upon the earth amongst his Saints militant before the day of Judgement They say that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 when used about Christ signifies his personall appearance alwayes in Scripture but say they Christ shall not personally appear untill the day of Judgment Ergo the destruction of Antichrist shall not be untill the day of Judgement Cold comfort for the Church Militant which by this opinion is like to lie under the frozen Zone of Antichristian persecution untill Doomes-day that all the world
39. is th be understood Ye shall not see me henceforth till ye shall say Blessed is he that cometh in the Name of the Lord. Look back to the Context and it tels us that the Church and state of Iudea should be desolate untill that time that they welcomed the messengers of the Gospel whom now they despised Ye shall not see me i. e. know me 't is an intellectuall sight of him by faith ye shall not believe in me untill the day that your heart be inclined according to Isaiah's prophecie to say How beautifull are the feet of them that bring the glad tidings of peace untill then the vail should be over the eyes of their minde as Paul expresseth it but when the time is fulfilled then they shall look on him whom they have pierced i. e. by faith look on him Zach. 12. 10. Primatius sends us to Matth. 24. to learn the meaning of Paul in the Text which Texts have the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 frequently yet do not thereby set forth the personall comming of Christ to Judgement but the powerfull and extraordinary actings of his Providence in raising up the two Witnesses ruining the Antichrist and his followers and converting the twelve Tribes to the Gospel this Paul calls the brightnesse of his comming or the splendor of his comming and Matthow calls it Chap. 24. v. 30. the Son of man comming in clouds with power and great glory And in Revel 14. 14. it is expressed by the appearing of the Son of man on a white cloud with a golden crown on his head there 's his splendor and glory and a sharp sicle in his hand there is his power There may three reasons be given why one the same politie person or action are diversly described in the New Testament 1. That they may comprehend all the Old Testament-prophecies of the seventh Trumpet 2 To make us to look higher then a literal sense or to think that there are any crowns or garments or white horses or swords but onely Imperial Majesty and power with Christ in heaven and that his comming is not in person but in power 3 For cleerer information as the generall head of the Western apostasie is gradually described 1 As one of the four Angels Revel 7. 1. Next a Star fallen Chap. 9. 1. Next the beast of the Sea with seven heads and ten hornes Chap. 13. 1. And at last the whore of Babylon Chap. 17. So the Antichrist 1 He is the beast of the bottomlesse pit Revel 11 7. 2 The beast of the earth deceiving people Revel 13. 14. 3 The skarlet-coloured beast full of names of blasphemy Revel 17. 3. the eighth King v. 11. that goeth to perdition and therefore the son of perdition And lastly the false Prophet cast into hell Revel 19. 20. But all this by the way we now proceed In Habakkuks song upon the stringed Instruments i e. a prophetick song for stringed Instruments were Instruments of prophecie 1 Chron. 25. 3. Psal. 49. 4. we finde Chap. â—… 3 4. a parallel Text setting forth in all probabilitie the self-same comming of Christ for the whole song in the matter of it is parallel with Revel 14. 1 2. which is all one with that Revel 19. where Christ and his army appear in glorious aray at the time of Antichrists ruine and one with Zach. 14. 5. The Lord my God shall come all the Saints with thee In v. 3. God came from Teman and the holy One from Mount Paran Selah this is to me a note upon Sigionoth for I understand it not onely let us wade as far as we can by the hand of the Scriptures guidance a parallel Text for this we have in Deut. 33. 2. which here is stiled Moses blessing wherewith he blessed the children of Israel and he said The Lord came from Sinai and rose up from Seir unto them and he came with ten thousand Saints c. This Text I may call a typicall Comment of that in Habakkuk for as Gods coming unto Mount Sinai for so the Text may be read was the forming of the house of Iacob into a Church-government and right way of worship and as from Mount Paran he blessed the Civill Government in endowing the Elders of Israel with a large measure of his Spirit thus establishing their Church and State-Government after their glorious deliverance out of the cruel bondage of Egypt so God shall come to deliver the house of Israel from under the long and sore captivity of the Roman Monarchy by converting them to the Gospel and restoring them to their own land so forming them to be a Church and State again Thus God shall come from Teman this is the comming of Christ and the holy One from Mount Paran Teman and Paran were two Wildernesses in which the Church of God wandered and where they had these glorious apparitions of Gods favour to note that the Church under the Gospel shall be Revel 11. and 12. in the Wildernesse when God speaks thus comfortably to her Selah being a note of musick for the elevation of the voice is very Emphaticall here for when God shall restore the Jews from captivity Jacob Psal. 53. 8. shall rejoyce and Israel shall be glad therefore Iohn heares Reve. 19. after the Roman Monarchy was ruined a great voice of much people saying Hallelujah the highest song deserves the highest note the note was so high set v. 6. that it was as the voice of mighty thunderings saying Allelujah But how is this comming parallel with that of Pauls and Matthews and Iohns this is exactly parallel with them for as here he is said to come so he is said to come with great splendor and glory and with great power his glory covered the heavens and the earth was full of his praise and his brightnesse was as the light here 's the brighnesse of Christs comming and then he had hornes comming out of his hand there is the comming of Christ in power there was the hiding of his power or the mystery of his power by which it appears this comming of Christ in glory and power to destroy Antichrist and convert the Jews is a mystery as Paul Romans 11. Iohn Revelat. 10. and Moses Deuteron 32. call it This comming of Christ is glorious and powerful in regard of the effects of it 't is powerful in regard of the powerful enemies it overcomes for it overthrows the Devil the beast and the false prophet and then Christs comming is glorious because it gathers the twelve dispersed Tribes together it brings in to the royal fold of Christ infinite numbers of Gentiles from all quarters of the World it makes all the Kingdoms of this World to become the Lords and his Christs How am I in the midst of these texts like a little Bee drowned in an Ocean of honey I am not able to count the texts that illustrate this glorious and powerful comming of Christ neither am I able to marshal
us hath relation both to Spirit Word and Epistle and so the Apostles meaning may be We had no such revelation from the Spirit we never delivered any such thing in any Sermon nor did we ever write any Epistle that expressed any such Doctrine The word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as the Learned observe is here put for a specious pretence So it is used in Coloss. 2. 23. which things 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 have a shew of wisdom a specious pretence of high Divinity Others as Hyperius and Zanchy conceive the word imports as much as 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifies a perswasory speech 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 A word that Paul useth Col. 2. 4. Lest any one beguile you with inticing words or probability of speech 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is an adapted perswasory speech to make that which is spoken be it true or false seem to be a reall clear and undobted truth It is in Logick called a Paralogisme which saith Aretius the false Apostles here made drawing their false conclusions from 1 Thess. 4. 15 17. Thus they might argue from these words Then we which remain alive shall be caught up together with them in the clouds and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Now if Paul reckon himself and the present Saints of Thessalonica amongst the number of them that shall be alive to be caught up with Christ then the day of Judgment must be near for Paul is well stricken in yeers and many of the Saints of Thessalonica are old and ready to go to their graves But say they Paul expresly saith Wee that are alive shall be caught up together with him Ergo The day of Judgment is neer at hand Such kind of Sophisme Zuinglius Primasius Hyperius and Aretius conceive the Apostle means Cornelius à Lapide and Estius by word understand the word or sermon of Paul as if Paul should say any such thing that the day of Judgment was at hand for saith Estius the false Apostles affirmed se ex ore Pauli audivisse that they heard Paul speak it That the day of Judgment was at hand from beleeving which the Apostle dehorts them flatly denying that any such word ever proceeded out of his mouth Nor by letter as from us This is to a word according to the Vulgar Translation which reads it so from the Greek Copie 'T is generally conceived that those false Apostles did either forge Epistles in Paul's name or set false glosses upon those he writ Therefore saith Theophylact these Seducers 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 They fained Epistles as if they had been written and sent forth by Paul and Zanchy as others conceives that either they did forge Epistles in Pauls name or else Paul alludes to the former Epistle where he had treated of this day of Judgment Beza hath a notable saying upon these words very fit to be applyed to our times alluding to the hereticks of those times he lived in If Beza which saw those monsters but in their babieclouts did conceive this Text to be fulfilled in his time what would he have said if he were now alive in England to see these monsters in their full strength and power But I leave this As that the day of Christ is at hand or instantly to be Some conceive 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies here the time past and so the false doctrine here they make to be the same with that in 2 Tim. 2. 17 18. of Hymeneus and Philetus who affirmed that the Resurrection was already past but there is no word in the Greek Copie in all this Text to draw any such Interpretation from 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 But we have parallel texts to prove that the word signifies the present time whether the present year or the present generation it is indifferent but it signifies present 1 Cor. 3. 22. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 either things present Some conceive possibly the Apostle here repeats the words in derision of the false Apostles who made it all their cry The day of Christ is coming upon us 'T is close at hand t is close at hand Zuinglius affirms that the Apostle took occasion to write this dehortation from a certain book that was writ Anno 24. which had this false doctrine of the day of Judgment 's being at hand This may have some probability if Zuinglius mean the 24 yeer after Christs Ascension But I can neither fully beleeve him nor cleerly disprove him But the most learned conceive that the Apostle grounds his Dehortation upon certain false teachers Doctrine that of meer envie took upon them the profession of Christianity possibly they were crafty Jews of that City on purpose to overthrow it when they saw an opportunity and Paul being absent they thought the fittest time to do mischief was then Now the mischef they intended was twofold 1. To bring Paul and Silvanus and Timotheus into the greatest disgrace that might be by defaming them as Seducers false prophets Baals priests Antichristian Ministers c. for if the day of Judgment did not fall out at their false set time Paul and Silvanus and Timotheus should be in all the blame these false teachers would have seriously professed that they were misled by those false prophets Paul and Silvanus and Timotheus but now their eyes were opened to perceive plainly that they were seducers and for their part they would no longer follow them nor their Doctrine which was so evidently false Such an engine in that age as well as this might have blowed up a whole Church at once and have made professors turn Apostates and hate their Ministers 2. By this Doctrine they intended to bring the Christian Religion into publick disgrace not onely to cast out Paul but Paul's doctrine out of all esteem for could they have possessed the people that the day of Judgment would certainly be that present year for 't is conceived that that was their designe the Christians that beleeved it would have neither sowed their seed nor dressed their vineyards nor provided for their families for to what purpose 〈◊〉 had been when they daily expected fire from heaven to consume all Now what a hardening would this have been both to the heathens on one hand and to the Jewes who had there a Synagogue on the other hand when they should have seen these poor Christians and their Families in extreme want of family necessaries meerly through the delusions of their Religion what shame reproach would it be to Christians and how would the Christian Religion have been cryed down as a most false deceitfull Religion and what a door had here been opened for weak Christians to have apostatized to their former Atheisme Many hundred yeers after our Ecclesiastical histories tell us that the Divell by such a cheat drew away many Professors to become Atheists when they saw the day of Judgment according to their Seducers Predictions came not to pass Ver. 3.
Prophecie I believe Rev. 10. 5 6 7. points directly for in this Text Iohn sees an Angel lifting up his hand to heaven and swearing by him that lives for ever and in Deut. 32. 40. there is he the Lord Christ lifting up his hand to heaven and saying I live for ever But that we may make good our assertion by evident demonstration we must go back as far as Deut. 28. where Moses begins his farewel Sermon to Israel and continues it to the end of cap. 32. A method that holy Paul that other Moses followes in Act. 20. 25. 30. when he knew his time was come that he should see the Macedonian Church no more after he had laid the foundation of the Church and builded them upon that foundation he strives to establish them precautioning them of the danger that would come upon them when he was departed even so doth Moses here as it were on Mount Pisgah foresee the future sins of the twelve Tribes and the peculiar punishments inflicted on them for those sins Now because we 'l go no higher then needs must in Deut. 28. 48. Moses shewes them their captivity under the Roman Empire God shall put a yoak of iron upon their neck until he have destroyed them i. e. the yoak of the fourth beast in Dan. 2. which is made of iron that is the Roman Monarchy and this is made more clear to be the Roman Monarchy in the next verse The Lord shal send a Nation against thee from far from the ends of the earth as the Eagle flieth that is the Roman Eagle shal come from the Western part of the world against them they shal ver 52. besiege the Cities of Iudah and take them and distress the people with sore famine Christ in his Prophecie Mat. 24. Luke 21. Mark 13 points to this Prophecie when he saith Famines and pestilences and wars and rumours of wars and distress of Nations and their scattering among many Nations shall come upon them This is so clear by the comparing of Moses and Christs prophecies that there needs no more be said of it So eminent shall be the plagues upon the Land of Iudah that Deut. 29. 22 23 24. all Nations in the world shall ask Why the Lord hath made it a barren wilderness bringing forth nothing for the good of man but even like Sodom and Gomorrah Now this is the very question this day in our ears this Scripture is fulfilled and the answer this day is like that in the Text Because they forlook Jesus Christ the God of their Fathers and clave to the Temple Ark and Altar which in comparison of Christ were but stocks and stones and in opposition to Christ were abominable filthy and detestable idols CHAP. VI. THat these Blessings and cursings are a Prophecie Deut. 30. 1 puts it out of doubt And it shall come to pass when all these things are come upon thee the blessing and the curse Benedictio maledictio haec as Tremelius reads it that is the eminent blessings they injoyed under Kings and the eminent curses that fell upon them under the Babylonish Tyranny but the dreadfullest of all under the Roman Monarchy yet when under this heavy curse Israel shall bethink themselves and return to the Gospel The Lord will turn their captivity and have compassion upon them and will return and gather them from all the Nations whether the Lord hath seattered them ver 3. 4. And the Lord will bring them into the Land which their fathers possessed and they shall possess it This is a promise of the restoring of the Tribes to their own Land after they have been captivated by the Roman Monarchy and driven into all Nations and parts of the world I might draw an Argument from Deut. 29. 29. to prove this If these revealed things belong to the Jewes and to their children for ever if the revealed curses under the Babylonish and Roman Monarchy belongs to the Jewes and to their children then the revealed blessings belong to them and to their children for ever for surely Gods bowels under the Gospel are not more shut up then under the Law but when the set time under the Law for their captivities accomplishment was fulfilled then God restored them from under the Babylonish yoak and is his arm shortned that he cannot or his bowels shut up that he will not redeem his captives from under the Romish iron yoak God forbid any Christian should be so sinfully and obstinately uncharitable as to think so This Prophecie of Moses cleares it to us that the Jewes shall be both converted to the Gospel and restored to their ancient possessions observe what Gospel promises are made to them ver 6 God will circumcise thine heart and the heart of thy seed to loveth Lord and ver 7. there is a curse upon the Roman Monarchy which persecuted hated and afflicted the Jews and to this day hates them All the curses that are now on the Jewes shal fal on the Romish Monarchy This curse hath in its eye principally the Roman Monarchy for the promise is this to Israel ver 8. They shall return and obey the voice of the Lord and do all his Commandments Now the nature of these Commandments evidenceth to us that this promise is a promise made under the Gospel and if so then the curse must needs be upon the Roman Monarchy for since the Gospel none have been their enemies comparable to the Roman Monarchy Who laid waste their Kingdome destroyed their City Temple Magistracy Government and sold the people into Egypt and all other parts of the world for slaves but the Romane Monarchy The nature of these commands for which God will circumcise the heart of his people to obey them they are expressed in ver 11 12 13 14. which verses two of the greatest Prophets that ever were in the world expound Christ and Paul Christ in Luke 17. 21. and Paul in Rom. 10. 6. Saith Moses The Commandments which I command thee this day it is not hidden from thee neither is it far off it is not in heaven that thou shouldest say who shall go up for us to heaven and bring it unto us neither is it beyond the sea that thou shouldest say who shall go over the sea for us and bring it to us that we may hear it and do it This saith Saint Paul Rom. 10. 6. is a description of the righteousness of faith and what 's that from Moses his words Paul tells us 't is the imbracing of the truth of Christs descension from heaven in his Incarnation and Sufferings and of his Resurrection and Ascension this is Moses commandment and this Paul in ver 9. plainly tells us 't is the commandment of faith which he and the other Apostles taught That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Iesus and shalt believe in thine heart that God raised him from the dead thou shalt be saved so that Moses commandment to the Jews was Pauls
by which Antichrist shall be by little and little consumed and brought to nothing if this be a true interpretation of these words then the Lords destruction of Antichrist is not nor cannot be at the day of Judgement for then the Ministerie of the Word shall cease But Cornelius à Lapide confutes this opinion by one good argument It cannot saith he be meant the preaching of the Word for Antichrist shall remove that by slaying the two Witnesses ô Cornelius I fear thou wilt prove a true Prophet Antichrist will forbid all Preachers upon the greatest penalties to let alone his usurped tyrannical bloudie government Neither saith he is the preaching of the Word able to kill Antichrist Alas Antichrist is Sermon-proof All the reason and Religion in the World shall not take him off from his purposes all the thundering Cannons of the Church affright him no more then a paper-pellet from a pot-gun he is shot-free in this holy War he is that Leviathan which counts these darts as stubble and laugheth at the shaking of these spiritual spears Therefore saith my Author Christ when he comes to destroy him shall not come ad praeliandum but ad judicandum Hence he and with him Aquinas Oecumenius Andreas Scaynus Fab. Paulutius Goranus conclude that by the spirit of his mouth is meant his Imperiall command his Majestick sentence Aquinas hath another tolerable exposition of these words he parallels these words with that in Isaiah 11. where it is said The zeal of the Lord of boasts shall do this that is the zeal of his justice wherewith he is zealous out of love for the good of his Church Indeed zeal it is flamma amoris and as the Noble Husband otherwise milde and gentle cannot but furiously arise against those that offer injurie to his beloved wife which flame of fury ariseth from the fire of love even such is Christs against the enemies of his Spouse the Church especially against the Antichrist the greatest and worst of enemies to the Spouse of Christ. Grotius by these expressions of the Apostle understands the facility of the work in Christs hands He can as easily confound Antichrist as the winde before the smoak away as the Sun causeth the dew to vanish 't is but speaking the word and it is done as Antiochus Dan 8. 25. a type of the Antichrist was destroyed without hands so shall the Antichrist without hands by the breath of Christs mouth be destroyed In Psal. 10. 5. there we finde the wicked succesful Tyrant puffing at his enemies he overthrows them by his might as easily as a man blows out a Candle 't is an expression full of disdain to his enemies even so here Christ in disdein to the Antichrists might and power shall with the breath of his mouth confound him As Antichrist puffed at the Saints of God disdeining all their force and power and easily vanquished and overthrew them so the Lord Jesus when he comes he will puff at Antichrist and easily vanquish him and therefore Christ in disdein to him all his power that he brings against him Rev. 19. 17 18. sends his messenger to invite the fowls of the air to a supper that he would give them made of the carcases of those Kings and Captains and mighty men so much doth he disdein the armies of his enemies and so little doth he doubt of the success of the day that before he fights he promiseth the fowles a supper at night of these mighty men that set themselves in array against him that day the breath of Christs mouth against his enemies is that that shall overthrow them in the height of their strength Therefore Isaiah 59 19. When the enemy shall come in like a floud the Spirit of the Lord shall by blowing against sin make him to flie the Spirit of Christs mouth shall vanquish the adversary the Antichrist The Scope of this Text being to set forth the destruction of the Antichrist by the Lord Jesus his immediate power and command I conceive the expressions in the Text are such as run parallel with the Old and New Testament-texts that prophesie also of this great day of Antichrists destruction For the finding out of those parallel Texts we must take in both expressions whom the Lord shall destroy with the breath of his mouth and consume with the brightnesse of his comming 't is but a doubling of the same expression as Grotius observes after the manner of the Hebrews when they intend either to expresse a thing elegantly or vehemently or certainly both these expressions tends saith Grotius to one thing For the first expression we shall finde some Texts onely parallel with the matter some both with the marter and the phrase whom the Lord shal destroy with the breath of his mouth Parallel both with the phrase and matter are those two Texts Isa. 11. 4. and Revel 19. 15. Isa. 11. 4. And he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked one This Text saith Cornelius à Lapide Paul alludes unto vel potiùs citat or rather cites it It is manifest both from the Hebrew Translators and also from the Greek Translatours that the Texts in the phrase are alike one thing more is observable in the reading of the Text that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Scebet which we translate rod signifies Scepter so that He shall smite the earth with the Scepter of his mouth this Scepter of his mouth Revel 19. 15. is called the sword of his mouth wherewith he smites the Gentiles here he smites the Gentiles there the earth both which Lukes copie of the same prophecie from Christs mouth expresseth Luke 21. 25. there the earth shall be distressed and in great anxiety and the Gentiles at their wits end CHAP. XI IN the prophecies there are two great dayes spoken of wherein Christ comes with sore punishments upon the Roman Gentiles before both which times he is seen upon his white horse In Revel 6. he goes forth conquering on his white horse but the Roman Gentiles yield not whereupon the great day of the Lambes wrath fell upon the Roman Emperours that they were not able to stand against Constantine but were utterly overthrown and cast from heaven the Imperiall Throne Revel 12. The next great day of battel against the Roman Gentiles is against the apostate Antichristian Gentiles Revel 19. where we finde Christ again appearing on his white horse utterly to ruine the heads of the Romish Apostasie and the Antichrist which are both set forth under these two titles the beast and the false Prophet Now as at the first great overthrow of the Romish Pagan Gentiles the Jewes were driven out of their own Countrey and scattered throughout the World so at or about this great day of Christs comming to plague the Antichristian Gentiles the Jews shall be both converted to the Gospel and called again to
them in such good method as may make its matter both plain and delightful to the Reader much less to expand the breadth and the length of those glorious truths which are involved in those texts but if in magnis voluisse sat est I am well enough I have done my endeavour I should now proceed to shew the errour of those Millenaries who on the other extream would from the frozen Zone of affliction bring the Church militant into the torrid Zone of terene triumph where it shall have no night of sorrow but shall have Christ personally present in the midst of them hereby utterly making void that text which is unlimited until the day of judgement Through many tribulations we must enter into the Kingdom of Heaven And All that will live godly in this life must suffer perâ—…ecetion nay worse then this it disgraceth Christ and debaseth his dignity so infinitely that when I consider the Majestie of Christs presence as he appeared to Iohn after his Assumption Revel 1. 13 14. with his eyes like a flame of fire his voice like the sound of many waters from his mouth a sharp two-edged sword proceeding and his countenance bright as the Sun shining in his strength and when I meditate of that glorious place into which with the humane nature he ascended I do so much abhor the thoughts of my Lord the King of Heaven and Earths debasing himself again to dwell with men before their bodies are changed and have put off corruption to be seene with these mortall sinfull eyes and touched with these polluted hands here that I cannot but cry out aloud against the opinion as blasphemous and therefore I passe it by as not worthy the mentioning of a solid Christian it needs not the confuting for the learnedst and most moderate of them Mead contradicts himselfe in one and the same page about this opinion and so do all of them that either print or prattle of it most ridiculously and absurdly Of the ANTICHRIST The Fourth Part. CHAP. I. WHose comming is after the working of Satan with all power and signes and lying wonders In verse 8. we had a generall view of Antichrists reigne and Antichrists ruine now in the four following verses the Holy Ghost descends to a more speciall and peculiar description of Antichrists appearing when he comes to be formally Antichrist i. e. to dis-possesse the lawfull Magistracie and Ministery the two anointed ones and to set himselfe and his Image or government above them The Holy Ghost describes him that the Church may know him above all others when he comes 1 By his manner of appearing in the world 2 By his followers or subjects His manner of appearing is described in Generall to be after the working of Satan Speciall to be 1 With power 2 With signes 3 With lying wonders 4 With all deceivablenesse of unrighteousnesse Whose comming Comming or appearance or presenee is here put for the full possession that Antichrist hath of the throne he usurpes his appearing formally to be Antichrist and how is this appearance the Text answers 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 according to the working of Satan Some learned men conceive that by Satan is not here meant the Devil but such an enemy and adversary of the Lords Anointed as Iudas was their ground for this is partly from the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifies not an infernall spirit or reprobated Angel but an adversary or spightfull enemy If this be the meaning of the Text then it must run parallel with that Revel 13. 12. he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him or in the presence of him that first beast is the Pope so that as the beast of the Sea with seven heads and ten horns got up to his usurped greatnesse by supplanting his Sovereign so by the same rounds of policie doth the Antichrist climbe up to his usurped greatnesse and thus he may be said to come after the working of the adversary the Pope who is the grand adversary of the true Christian Church and of the Jews conversion but I cannot adhere to this opinion for Satan here as for the most part every where is one of the black attributes of the Devil appropriated onely to him It would scarce be worth while unlesse to satisfie the curious to repeat the wilde opinions of some learned men on this expression Some thinke he is a Devil incarnate who endeavours to imitate Christ and to perswade the people that he is Christ they think he shall be of the Tribe of Dan and after this manner deceive the Jews They think he will pretend to come of a Virgin as Christ did Others that he shall not be a Devil but a man begot by the Devill of a Virgin Hierome on Isaiah 16. thinks that the Devil is the father of Antichrist this in some sense is tolerable but for the other opinions I finde not the least ground in Scripture for them and therefore leave them Neither can I so heartily imbrace the opinion of learned Swarez and those other Romish Doctors of his opinion who hold that Antichrist shall be filled with the evil qualities of the Devil from his cradle Yea the Devill say they shall so shape him to his mould when he is in the wombe of his mother ut temperamentum complexio ejus fiat propensissima ad omnia vitia these things may be true but 't is very uncertain to me I desire to sail by the Compasse of the Word and the winde of the Holy Ghost in the Scripture as neer as I can and that if any thing will bring me to the desired fair heaven of truth Anton. Scaynus Hemingius and Bened Iustin have very good glosses upon these words the neerest to truth of any of these I have repeated I most concurre with Zanchie upon this Text his coming is according to the working of Satan i e. the Devil who hath Iohn 8. 44. two Epithites given him by the Holy Ghost even by Christ himselfe he is a liar and a murtherer now according to this efficacie of Satan Antichrist comes these ars as Zanchie calls them Antichristi arma the weapons of Antichrist in this sense we finde a parallel Text Revel 13. 11. the beast of the earth spake like the Dragon and how did the Dragon speak Gen. 3. 1 3 5. he speaks flattering lies and teaches abominable rebellion He taught to pluck the forbidden fruit so Antichrist flatters his followers with fair promises of liberty but they are lies and teacheth to pluck the forbidden fruit you know there is one sacred tree in the world which man is forbidden to touch yea the Hereticks and Apostates of these times confesse it some of the eminentest of them have acknowledged that it is as sacred corn onely to be reaped by the hand of God now this forbidden fruit this sacred tree he cutteth down and herein he commeth according to the efficacie of Satan i. e. as a liar and
great Prophet he is a mock Moses and therefore a false Prophet Thus by the way something out of my way yet much conducing to the purpose have I given you a description of Antichrist in laying before you the texts that make mention of Antichrist I now returne onely be pleased to observe thus much to our purpose from this which we have said by the way of the Antichrist that the Antichrist which is a false Prophet is not destroyed untill the seventh Trumpet sound for that battle Revel 16. unto which the Kings of the earth and the whole world ver 14. are solicited to send aide and that Revel 16. 19. are both under the seventh Trumpet at both which which are both one the false Prophet appeares Obj. But if we are now under the sixth Viall as many learned and pious Divines affirme and as this worthy and eminent Divine my informer supposeth then is this great battle to be fought before the third woe-trumpet sound and all the enemies of the newly converted Jewes and the refined Gospell-Gentiles are to be destroyed before the seventh Trumpet sound the Judgment shall sit Dan. 7. â—…6 compared with Rev. 20. 4. the blessed time of 1335. dayes Dan. 12. 12. which is a great effect of the first Resurrection Rev. 20. 5. there 't is positively said that the ruine of those grand enemies immediately before spoken of at the great battle and thereupon the establishing of the true Church in great power and Authority Dan. 7. 26. Rev. 20. 45. this is the first Resurrection and so Revel 11. 11. the deliverance of the Gentile Gospell-Church is termed and to this is the redemption of the believing Jewes resembled Ezek. 37. 5 6 7 9 12 13. and Dan. 12. 12. all which comes to passe under the sixth Viall which is to be under the second woe now if these things come to passe before the seventh Trumpet sound there is a grosse mistake in the Calculation Sol. For answer hereunto we lay downe these two generall propositions viz. 1. That none of the seven last Plagues or Vials are poured out under the second woe Secondly that there is a threefold time in the clearing of these things to be distinguished viz. First the present time of the passing of the second woe and the things at that present time to be acted Secondly the intervenient time betwixt the passing of the second woe and the coming of the third and the things in that intervall of time to be acted Thirdly the sounding of the seventh Trumpet or the coming of the third woe and the effect of it We affirme that none of the seven Vialls are to be poured out under the second woe-trumpet The conclusion we intend from the proving of this proposition is that we at this time are not under the sixth Viall in drawing to this Conclusion we shall prove two things which confirme the Proposition First that none of the seven last plagues come untill the second woe be past Secondly that as yet the second woe is not past these being put into a Syllogisme the Conclusion followes Ergo we are not under the sixth Viall the first position I thus prove Arg. If none of the seven Vialls be poured out untill the third woe or the seventh Trumpet sound then none of the seven Vialls are poured out under the second woe or sixth Trumpet for Rev. 11. 4. the sixth Trumpet or second woe is past before the seventh Trumpet or third woe cometh But none of the Vialls are poured out untill the seventh trumpet sound Ergo none are as yet poured out the minor I thus prove If the seven Vialls are not poured out as they are not untill the seven Angels that poure them out Rev. 15. 5 6. come out of the Temple and that Temple be not open for them to come forth as it is not Revel 11. â—…9 untill after the seventh Trumpet have sounded then no Vialls are as yet poured out because the third woe is not yet come and the third woe cannot yet come because the second is not yet past this leads me to the proof of the second position viz. that the second woe is not as yet past Thus we prove it Arg. The second woe is not past untill the witnesses have finished their Testimonie be killed lye dead three dayes and an halfe i. e. three dayes and the halfe of three dayes and rise againe and ascend unto Heaven and untill the Earth-quake which throwes downe the tenth part of the City come and the 7000. names of men be slaine but the witnesses have not yet lyen dead three dayes and the halfe of three dayes i. e. foure dayes and a halfe nor are they risen nor is the tenth part of the City fallen by the Earth-quake nor are the 7000. chiefs of men as yet destroyed therefore Rev. 11. 7. â—…4 the second woe is not yet past This leads us to the second proposition There is a threefold division of time to be considered in the more full handling and clearing of this matter within each of which divisions distinct and various things and actions are limitted as first at the present time of the finishing of the second woe we see what eminent things concur in Revel 11. 1 1â—… 1â—… as but even now we have shewed For the clearing of the thing in hand let me premise a word or two of the three woes Know then that there are but three woes mentioned in this Prophesie the first woe falls upon the Western Churches caused through the foule and horrible apostacie of the heads of the Church of Rome the Papacy which is called a Star fallen from Heaven Revel 9. verse 1. to verse 11. The second wo falleth upon the Eastern Churches Rev. 9. 13. 21. the Instruments of which woe are the Turkes the Mahumetan brutish Tyrants who have not onely defaced the Christian Churches in the Easterne part of the world but also keep the Jews from possessing freely their own promised Lands and possessions Now at the end or finishing of this second woe God begins to visit his Church under her long Sackcloth state and condition and to raise up his slaine witnesses and take away one tenth from the grand enemies and at the same time to slay a great number of notable enemies of the Church and after this in a very short time comes the third woe which falls dreadfully upon all the enemies of the Church that oppose it throughout the world both the Turkes and the Papacie who have brought such woes upon the Western and Eastern Churches Now after the second â—…oe is past when the witnesses are raised and the tenth part of the City is fallen and the 7000. are slaine betwixt the second woe passing and the third woe coming there is an intervall of time which is diligently to be observed That which Iohn sees in this intervall of time is in Revel 14. 15. for Revel 12. 13. the next following the eleventh are a vision of the